The Times We Wish For
by Luciten
Summary: Chieko Hananoko is an odd, odd teenager. She's recluse, shy and rumored creepy, that can see spirits and murder with a single glance. But in reality, she's just a quiet teen with exceptional tennis skills. Childhood friends with Nekozawa, things already were weird to start off with. So why on earth is she affiliated with the Host Club! MorixOC
1. The Days of Which We Met

oh, well, _hello!  
_my name is Luciten and this is one of my first fanfics on this 'ere site.  
hope you enjoy c;

* * *

"_Nice to meet you, my name is Kemono**—**," _

_Oh no, I messed up…_

_My name is Chieko Hananoko. People call me Kemonoko though. My real name means 'wise flowerchild'. And Kemonoko? I've been called that ever since middle school.. and it means beastchild. But that's ok, because when people call me that, they get happy. I don't mind when people are happy._

_But right now, my priority is to find my glasses and get going. Today is my first day in Ouran High School. It's a nice school, my parents had once told me. O **—** of course I'm reluctant to go there.. so much rich, belittling glances awaiting my arrival, but my second cousin Nekozawa attends Ouran. He's a bit weird, but he's one of my best friends._

"_Nice to meet you, my name is H **—** Hananoko Chieko." _

_Perfect. _

_When people describe me, they usually say something along the lines like cracked, dull lips, wide eyes behind Harry Potter glasses, (which rudely bumps against my eyelashes), with shaggy, unkempt updos. I wish I could please them, but I'm very bad with fashion. Maybe I'll make friends who are good with it!_

* * *

**Chapter One: The Days Of Which We Met**

"Sister, looking ugly again today!" a little girl pips, her light-brown twintails bouncing as her grey eyes flamed with mischievous intent. Next to her was another little boy, same age, same physical characteristics: twins. But completely different in personality, they continued their previous Cheerio brawl over who was best at annoying their older sister.

"I-I'm sorry, Jiri," a frail voice says, a haunting aura emitting throughout the room. "But I have to go now. Finish your breakfasts, guys…!" Taking the last gulp of a glass of water, the female races out the door way, a few maids squealing at the chills that run up their spines. Stepping out, the two, accompanied by a woman, watch as their Maybach speeds out the driveway.

"Bye bye, Kemonoko!" says the two tots, clinging on to a middle aged maid. With a worried expression, the woman, Honda, gives a weak wave.

"I hope no one gives her trouble.." she says, sucking at her teeth. Chieko was always kind of awkward... don't even get her _started_ on the tales of junior high **—**

Lacking attention, Jiri and Kenji wrap their small fingers around her long skirt. "Don't worry, Kemonoko is strong!" Kenji says, a nod coming from Jiri. "And she has Ume-nii!"

"Somehow I don't find that any better...," Honda voices, scratching the back of her head.

"Can we get ice cream now?"

"Honestly, you two…"

_ x **—** x **—** x **—** x  
_

_Ba-dump. Ba-dump._

Chieko had never felt this nervous before in her life. Usually she had anyone, _someone_, or even anything to comfort her, but her driver picked today to get the lovely Maybach waxed. Panting heavily in front of the school gates, several pairs of beady, lavish eyes darted themselves in her general direction.

"_Stay calm, Chieko,_" she thinks over and over, hands clammy. "_It's just a school…_" with a rickety step, her mechanical movements caused a few odd glances and giggles. "What a weirdo, she isn't even wearing the school uniform!" "Bet she doesn't even go here."

Each step she took created the smallest tremor under her.

"_Stop looking at me," _she thinks, beads of sweat waterfalling down every crevice of her awkward teenage body. "_I'm just trying to commute._"

At the sound of the first bell, a switched flicked in her brain as she sprinted with killer speed towards the room situated on a piece of paper. Must. Find. Ume-chan!

Every corner indeed felt like it threatened her life. Rich people here, tea parties there, oh the profanity. Turning a sharp left as she slid on her heels, her bag whipped behind her.

Straight into someone's face.

Frozen in utter terror, a brisk slap of awkward silence shattered above the two. Lowering her paralyzed bag-hand, Chieko turned slowly, to stare directly at a red-faced, tired looking girlyboy. A blush made its way to her face, boy was she/he pretty.

Prettier than her _**—**_ which already peeled at her miniscule grain of ego, _if _it could even be called that.

"I **—** I'm sorry, never did I mean to hit your face with my bag," she said ghost-ily, as her arms moved to emphasize her apology. "Please don't sue me!"

Instead of being spat at and kicked down, she heard a girly laugh instead. "Eh?"

The brunette boy, girl, boy?, shook ... it's head. "That's alright, nothing surprises me in this school anymore. Haruhi Fujioka," (it) said, taking out a hand which Chieko unknowingly flinched at.

"A ___**—**_ ah, thank you, Fujioka-san," she said, taking the hand softly and quickly taking it back. Girl, definitely a girl.

"K..Kemonoko," she said, internally defeated. One day, one day for sure!

"Kemonoko? What an interesting name. I like it. Are you alright; I saw you running around a few times," Haruhi continued, as continual flashbacks of Chieko running around five floors played out in an internal theater. With a blush and a head scratch, Chieko let out the tiniest choppy laugh.

"I'm trying to find my cousin, he's at this room," Chieko said, giving her the paper. "But if this is troublesome, you don't have to help me at all! I'm fine I swear!"

Oh shoot. Already asking someone to do something for her. She just met the darn girl, when will you learn, Hananoko?!

She received another warm laugh. "That's alright, you should stop assuming. Not everyone here is a rich bastard, you know," she unintentionally let slip out.

"W ___**—**_ wha," Chieko tried to say, but was interrupted. "Now, we should show you to your room. Follow me, I think I know who to ask!"

Hopefully this wasn't a bad idea…

_ x **—** x **—** x **—** x_

Upon nearing the third music room, Chieko was starting to feel a bit nervous. What if Ume-chan was with friends, she never wanted to interrupt what he does. But on the other hand, there was no one else she could go to, except for her new acquaintance, Haruhi. She was very pleased with her kindness.

"Are we almost there? You don't have to take me all the way…" Chieko said, pushing together two index fingers. Haruhi put up a finger to her lips.

"Almost there, Kemonoko-san. One more step, don't be afraid."

She was more relieved that Haruhi wasn't afraid of _her._ Mind many, Chieko wasn't exactly the brightest ray of sunshine out there. She was quite a healthy color from all the outdoor activity, but the fact that her hair covered her face, and her glasses covered her quite stunning eyes made everything just.. creepier.

Being a lanky 5'10 (11? 6'0?) didn't help a lot either. And having a bad smile.. and having creepy grudge hair.. and ___**—**_

Opening the doors, a feral heavenly light bit away at the darkness that was Chieko Hananoko. "_Too bright..!"_

"Welcome to the Host Club!"

Blinking repeatedly, Chieko couldn't help but let the lightest blush spread on her cheeks, hidden behind her large towering frames. Boys, boys everywhere. Dressed up in their usual high school uniforms, they all established themselves as amateur models. Man, did she feel like utter _crap_. Dressed in shaggy piece of what was the buttercup gown, it held no shape and looked more like a dull sundress (thank you washing machine). Subconsciously picking at the hemline, she couldn't help but give a little frown.

"Oh, my daughter, how nice to see you so early in the morning!" The blonde one said, scooping Haruhi up into his arms, spinning her profusely. Speaking of which, why were they here? Didn't they have class? Or did they just sit here and bask in handsome glory 24/7?

"Senpai!" Haruhi said, pushing him away which received a cry and exponential mushroom growth.

"Who's your little friend? Looks dirty," A pair of twins mocked, nearing up to Chieko as they picked at her misshapen dress and glasses.

"Eh? P ___**—**_ Please refrain from touching me...!" she tried to quietly protest, which of course went unheard.

"Hikaru! Kaoru!" Haruhi defied. Sensing immediate danger, the two twins mischievously sniggered as they ran away from the defenseless newcomer.

"Geez, you guys are useless. I bring someone new and the first thing you do is treat them like a lab frog," she berated. Turning to the man with glasses, she rubbed her temple, forking over the pink piece of paper with single digits. "Kyoya, do _you_ know where this room is?" Haruhi asks, only receiving a simple glance.

Peering at the piece of paper, he nodded and thought a while, as a smaller blonde boy approached Chieko.

"What happened to your dress? Why is it so flat?" he said, picking at it with finicky taste. Covering herself subconsciously, Chieko laughed awkwardly. "Washing machine problems…"

"Miss, if your looking for this room, its over there," Kyoya said, pointing to his right. Looking over, everyone peered towards the eerie black door, that opened with a defiant creak.

"Chi-channnn~" a serpent like voice hissed, a hooded figure moved out into the lit room.

Taking off his hood, a handsome Nekozawa gave a kind smile. Her savior!

"Kemonoko-san, do you know Nekoza-," Haruhi said, as the others watched the scene unfold.

A running, bleary-eyed Chieko, smiling brightly, ran towards her friend. "Ume-chan!" And abruptly jumped into his arms snuggling into his chest.

Haruhi's raised finger quickly deflated. "Eeehh?" she chimed.

"You didn't know Haruhi? Chieko Hananoko, aka Kemonoko, childhood friend of Umehito Nekozawa, ranked 13 international junior tennis player. New sophomore to Ouran, rumored to see ghosts and summon spirits. Seriously, I don't understand the lack of knowledge," Kyoya critically acclaimed, a small smirk making its way downtown, walking fast. "Even we knew that much, Haru-chan!" the twins said, glomping the unknowing Haruhi. "We just like to mess with newbies!"

"Ah, I've heard of her. Never expected her to look like that though, neh, Takashi?" the smaller blonde, Honey, said receiving a blatant stare in return. Haruhi pounded a fist into her open palm, spinning off the nuisances that clung to her small frame.

"Oh, that's who she was. No wonder she was so lost, it's the middle of the year!" Haruhi said, giving off a small giggle.

After ending her hug-and-spin rendezvous replay with Nekozawa, Chieko approaches Haruhi with the smallest smile.

"Thank you, Fujioka-chan. I apologize for burdening you."

___ x **—** x **—** x **—** x_

Silence.

"Fujioka.. chan?" Tamaki says, deeply aghast. Chieko nods furiously, as gleaming eyes stared at her with testy judging opinions.

"_Did I do something wrong?!" _she springs to automatically, looking at a dazed Nekozawa who was slowly being deteriorated by the fluorescent light fixtures.

"Y ___**—**_ you're a girl, right?" Chieko said, shaking. "There's no way you could be a boy.. not saying that wearing the male uniform is weird or anything…" she said, clinging to Umehito who remained silent and creepy at the same time.

"Was I too overly familiar?! I'm sorry, I never meant to disrespect you, its just that you showed me around and ___**—**_ and…!"

"Ha-na-no-ko-chann…"

_**KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!**_

* * *

r&r my peeps.  
im sorry for the corny jokes.  
always the jokesss  
hope you enjoyeddd  
just so you know this is a mori x oc fanfic  
maybe a little… _drama _here and there tho :*


	2. The Party of Steel

Back and ready to attack, here is chapter dos!  
Thanks _so _much for the review guys, I'm really  
in the writing mood!

**Chapter Two: The Party of Steel**

"I didn't even touch her, swearrrr."

"Then why did she faint?"

"Maybe cake will wake her up!"

"Of course not, Honey, a kiss surely from a prince such as I will do the obvious trick-!"

Gasping as she jolted upright, the raven-haired female clunked heads with an invading Tamaki. Overdramatically shouting, the prince retreated into a somewhat moldy corner.

Chieko, on the other hand, was completely confused on to what had happened. All she remembered was a Nekozawa-shaped body bag being shoved back into the occult club, and mischievous Cheshire's making her fade to black.

"W – Wha," she croaked, holding her temples. "Class, I need to get to class…"

"Don't worry about class right now, I made a very _generous _call," Kyoya remarked from behind the couch. "What we have on our hands is far more important."

Chieko squealed at the intense atmosphere. Oh god, she knew she should have **never** asked for directions.

"C'mon Kyoya you got us on a thread. Punish her, punish her!" the twins cheerily chanted, receiving a killer glare from Haruhi instead.

"Personally, what if she knows I'm a girl, huh? Kemo-," cough, cough, "_Hananoko_-chan wouldn't tell anyone, right, Hananoko-chan?"

Chieko, speechless, nods feverishly in conclusion. "Yes, of course!"

Quicky and snappy, Kyoya remained defiant. "Do you think verbal obligation will solve this?"

An imaginary bullet drilled through her chest. These people... these people were terrible.

"But Haru-chan is right! What _can _we punish Chi-chan for? Right, Takashi?" Honey said, miraculously pulling out a rainbow array of sweets, shoving them into his mouth soon after.

Mori just gave a gentle shrug, gazing quizzically at the newcomer.

"We can't make her a host, way too creepy.. and dusty," Kaoru said, squeezing the tip of his nose, patting off a sheet of dust on Chieko's head. "What makes someone so dusty, anyways?!"

"I wasn't planning to," Kyoya said. "What do you think, King?"

Tamaki expanded his arms.

"All ladies must be trusted! We cannot subject such a lady to cruel behavior!" Tickling the underside of her chin, a jolt ran up Chieko's body as her lips twitched, face appalled.

"Don't you agree, Princess?"

Seen to be ambushed by an unknown amount of blue-gray spirits, Haruhi sighs for what it seems like the hundreth time of the day.

"Hananoko-chan already said she wouldn't say anything. We can take your word for it, am I correct?"

With a huge, singular nod, Haruhi laid out an open palm.

"There. No arguments. No _punishments _either," Haruhi concluded, clapping her hands.

"How boring," the twins commented, shaking their heads.

"I guess this is what we must settle with. Be warned, Hananoko-san," Kyoya waned, closing his binder.

"This is nowhere close to being a closed case."

_x __**—**__ x __**—**__ x __**—**__ x_

It was already mid-second period by the time she was able to mark her attendance. Boy was the day hectic. All she wanted was directions, never a traumatic experience.

Entering her history class, she automatically felt tiny as a sea of eyes watched her enter late.

"Ah, Hananoko-san, you've arrived!" the young teacher said with a goofy grin. "My name is Mr. Sanin, it's a pleasure to have you in my class!" Leading her to the direct left of his podium, he cleared his throat.

"Class this will be your new classmate, Hananoko Chieko. Many of you may know her as the rank 13 international junior tennis player," he starts. Many murmurs broke out over the group of 30+ kids.

"Her?! She looks so creepy though," one daringly shouted out, receiving a few laughs.

"Ahem, _but _even though she is different, she is just like many of you. Treat her with equal respect. You got that?!"

An un-toned "Yes teacher," rang in the classroom but Chieko had a tiny feeling that some of them didn't plan on abiding.

Suddenly smiling, Mr. Sanin faced the newcomer. "Now, even though it's practically the middle of the school year, don't be afraid to talk. Go ahead and sit next to..." Hovering his finger above an attendance sheet, he quickly found her name.

"Takashi Morinozuka and Mitsukuni Hanonizuka!"

A fanfare of female outburst soon followed. "Why does the freak get to sit next to them?! Mr. Sanin, you suck!"

"Hey now!" Heads turned to the defenseless-looking Honey. "Chi-chan is not a freak!"

With a fleeting heartbeat, Chieko let herself smile. "_What a kind soul Hanonizuka-san is!_"

"She's an _ex-or-cist_! Hikaru-chan told me so!"

"_Yes, yes I am an exorcist __**— **__Wait, whaa."_

Drowning in a bottomless pit of giggles and chuckles, with another strawberry colored face, Chieko reluctantly takes her seat. This semester was going to be long, she could already tell.

"Did I get it wrong, Takashi?" Honey pouted at, hugging his bunny closer. "It's okay Chi-chan, we like you!" he supported, fist in the air. Mori found himself obligated to nod back, as a translucent smile sneaked its way in response.

"Thank you, Hanonizuka-san, Morinozuka-san," she managed to shyly input, absentmindedly pulling out her notebooks.

"But wow, rank 13 internationally? That's awesome! Right, right, Takashi?!" Honey enthusiastically applauded.

"Yeah," Mori said, sounding disinterested. With an eep, Chieko came to realize what a scary person Morinozuka seemed like. Deep, earthquaking voice and petrifying gaze, he was one of the hosts she probably shouldn't mess with.

"I **—** It's nothing special..." Chieko bashfully says. "I wish I was as good as history as I was in tennis, though..."

"You're bad at history?"

"Just a bit.." Reminiscing on the numerous 75s she got, she slowly felt like not touching in such a subject... At all.

"Takashi is good at history. It's one of his best subjects!" Honey praised. "He could totally help you not fail."

Deadpanned, Chieko shook her head in refusal. "N - No, I don't want to be a burden!"

"Morinozuka-san seems to be busy enough with the club and all. I'll manage." Humbly she offers a shaky thumbs up. "And besides that's the only thing I'm pretty mediocre at..."

Honey, overwhelmed by her reclusiveness, couldn't help but jump her from across the table, hugging on to her neck.

"Chi-chan, you're so cute!"

"You guys! Pay attention to my lesson!"

_x __**—**__ x __**—**__ x __**—**__ x_

"Uhm... Why am I in this class..."

The red haired twins laughed simultaneously. "Kyoya works wonders!"

After history, Chieko buzzed straight to third period; Chemistry. It was regulatory for sophomores to take chemistry, but for some reason there was an abundant amount of freshmen.

"We're special, kind of like you but less ugly and creepy," Hikaru said, Kaoru in agreement. "Most of us freshmen have already taken biology before, unlike you. You probably took earth science."

"Gross!" Hikaru remarks, sticking out his tongue.

"P **— **Please, I need to pay attention to class..."

"Not happening!"

The rest of the day was incredibly ironic. History with the two "zukas", chemistry with the Wonderland twins, trig with Kyoya, english with the dreaded Tamaki, language with a slightly refreshing Haruhi, and many more.

"Seriously? He put you in all of our classes?" Haruhi questioned. Chieko, now a mere blob, nodded meekly.

"Well, that's not completely horrible. You know, they're not as bad as they make themselves out to be, even though they act incredibly spoiled sometimes. I should know."

"O **— **Oh yeah, Fujioka-san, you are our honor student, correct? That's great~" Chieko slowly praised. Bashfully, Haruhi put up a hand.

"It isn't that great _all_ the time. Rich fools belittle intelligence, fitting huh?"

Chieko tried to offer a smile. Morphed into an a-class casper, Haruhi continued, ignoring the killer vibes.

"You should come to the club after school. It's actually a pretty fun experience, _most _of the time. I'll support you too, and maybe you can even see Nekozawa-san."

The sound of her relatives name automatically made her cheerful.

"Alright... I'll try."

_x __**—**__ x _**—**_ x __**—**__ x_

"Welcome to the Host Club!"

It was amazing to see how many girls actually appeared after school. Stationed all over the once empty music room, they seemed like they were having the time of their lives.

"Ah, Hananoko-san, it's very nice to see you again," Kyoya stated, appearing behind her. With a squeal, she backed away quickly, straight into a table surrounded by lavish couches.

"Watch where you're going, freak!" A mistress stated, lifting her tea cup. Tamaki, who was their host, tsked his tongue.

"Such words should never come out of a ladies mouth," Tamaki said, scooping her up and gazing intently into the mistress' eyes. "Should I take responsibility to rid of it?"

Disgusted, Chieko evaporated from the cheesy scene and instead trekked towards where Haruhi was entertaining. No wonder they wanted to keep her gender a secret; she had quite the fan**girls**.

"Nice to see you again, Hananoko-chan!" Haruhi said, getting up quickly. Physically annoyed, her two guests rolled their eyes.

"Fujioka-kun, come back!" they agreed on, puffing their cheeks. Perturbed, Haruhi was quick to apologize.

"I'm sorry, Hananoko-chan, I didn't know today would be so busy all of a sudden. Maybe you should go to Honey, his guests always seem like the nicest ones."

Steadily pushing, Chieko was brought to the two juxtaposed couches against her will. "N **— **No, it's fine! I need to go home and study.. and, and!"

"Tomorrow is Saturday, you'll have plenty of time to study over the weekend!"

Tripping over, Chieko condensed into the scene.

"Hanonizuka-san," she quivered, pushing her index fingers together. "Sorry, but Fujioka-san told me to come over..."

"Denied! Right, Honey?" the group of girls said, Chieko automatically frowned. What was up these girls?

"Yeah, totally. Her dress perfectly describes her; dull, flat and shady!" An eruption of laughter, minus the host group, filtered itself straight towards Chieko.

With a quivering lip, her fists lightly tightened. Why was it always her?

"Chi-chan?" Honey asked, turning behind. "Ne, Chi-chan, don't listen to them.."

Chieko shook her hand, long bangs shielding her framed eyes.

"I.. I should probably go, Haninozuka-san. I'll... I'll see you Monday."

Followed by trail of indefinite laughter, Chieko ran as fast as her legs could take her. Bag in her left hand, she used her right wrist to wipe at her damp eyelids.

The host club, nice? Minus Haruhi and Honey, they all seemed like horrible creatures.

The twins, always making fun of her appearance.

Tamaki, pretending to care then fending off into his harem.

Kyoya... being Kyoya.

And Mori.

Quiet, subtle and literally non-existent, he always looked at her with the hardest glares.

Turning a sharp corner and not even thinking of calling her driver, she continued for the rest of the ten blocks.

Today was just not her day. She met that host club, which started it all. She expected a few mean words here and there, of course, but those boys just seemed to let in the brunt of the storm.

She wanted to spend time with her cousin, and make friends with new people. But everything seemed futile, with her appearance and associations.

"_I just want to go home_."

_x __**—**__ x _**—**_ x __**—**__ x_

ooh, a little emotional here at the end, huh huh?

don't worry, the next chapters will be super light hearted.

just needed to add some kind of sustenance to make Chieko

slightly dislike the host club.

girls sometimes, _ya know_?


	3. A Peace of Her Mind

It wasn't the best Friday.

_"Watch where you're going, freak!" _

_"Denied!"_

_"...dull, flat and shady!"_

As cliche as the insults were, the toll they had on Chieko's permanently deteriorating ego were more than noticeable. Her weekends usually consisted of considerably _nice, enjoyable _things.

All she did was be unproductive.

Barely finishing her homework on time, Chieko managed to slip in meager three hours of sleep before she was rudely awakened a dull Monday morning.

Lazily pulling on her scrubby uniform after taking a quick trip to the bathroom, she headed downstairs to eat breakfast and quickly head to class.

**Chapter Three: A Peace of Her Mind**

"G - Good morning..."

Solid, many girls stared at her with finicky expressions.

"Morning, Chi-chan!"

Turning towards the voice Chieko was only able to stare back at Honey before puckering her lips.

"Morning," she shyly tried, taking her seat without making any eye contact.

Sensing the tension, Honey let out a wail. "Takashi, she's mad at us!" Tears threatened their departure.

"Mitsukuni," Mori warned, with no specific tone.

"I think that's enough," he blatantly decreed, eyes slow on her appearance.

"Ehhh? Why?!" Honey questioned, but the trio remained silent nonetheless.

For the remainder of the school day, continuously, things were a bit.. off. Though Chieko was used to not being talk to, oddly enough, not a single insult was heard from the twins, and Tamaki hadn't called her princess for _quite _a while.

Entering her last period of the day, Chieko expected Haruhi to be silent as well, but was surprised to see her willingness in conversation.

"Good afternoon, Hananoko-chan!"

Childishly, Chieko's cheeks inflated at the source of the greeting.

"Good afternoon, Fujioka-san."

Deeply sighing, Haruhi gave an uneasy frown.

"About yesterday, Hananoko-chan, we didn't do it on _purpose_," Haruhi started, keeping her voice low as their teacher rambled on about the essence of Shakespeare.

"Sometimes.. girls get jealous and they don't think before they speak."

Chieko said nothing else, but was easily listening. She might have been slightly irked, but in no way shape or form would she not be paying attention to Haruhi.

"Besides, we kicked them all out afterwards, you should have seen the twins defend you."

Now _that _caught her off-guard. Turning, Chieko furrowed her brows.

"D — Defended me? I thought they disliked me..."

Haruhi couldn't help but laugh at the miscalculation.

"No, they're just like that. All the time."

Chieko placed her pencil down.

"All.. the time?" She quickly paled.

"Ooh yeah. You should've seen them during middle school, they were from like another planet..."

**_x _****— ****_x _****— ****_x _****— ****_x_**

"They … did that to a girl?" Chieko said, finishing the last of her popsicle. Haruhi nodded.

"For a while I thought it was cruel, but they've been through things as complicated as some of my problems," Haruhi said, walking alongside her classmate.

They seemed relevantly normal.. minus their harsh behavior. It all kinda made sense now.

"On another note, have you been seeing Nekozawa-san lately?"

Chieko gave it a thought.

"Actually, I haven't. With.. Friday and all," Chieko explained, quietly scratching the side of her cheek. The duo walked back inside the school making their way to the third music room.

"Ah," Haruhi thought aloud, stopping in her tracks. Turning back, Chieko merely tilted her head in curiosity. Peering out the window, a small book lay on the stoop of the middle fountain.

"F — Fujioka-san?" she asked, slightly worrying about Haruhi's complicated expression.

"I think that's my English book back at the courtyard," she digressed, sighing. "Stay right here, I'll be back quick!"

Running back to where they originally came from, Chieko reached out a hand. "_Wait, I'll help you look for it-!_" is what she wanted to say. There was always a next time.

Leaning patiently on the wall behind her, the ghostly female played around with her fingers, tapping them joint by joint.

"_Fujioka-san is taking a while... I wonder if I should..._" Taking at least three steps towards the down staircase, Chieko stopped dead in her tracks.

Smugly, a trio of Host Club mistresses approached. When did they get here?

"Heard you talking with Haruhi-kun," one said, the others surrounding her.

Chieko remained silent, but was forced to listen to their further complaints.

"Who do you think you are anyways? Even though you're related to that freak Nekozawa-san, that doesn't mean you can suddenly call dibs on hosts," another said.

She remembered her.

"_Watch where you're going, freak!_"

She remembered her quite well.

"And besides, look at you. They probably only talk to you because they're too nice," the last dreamed, the others intently agreeing.

"They can't deny you, but _we _certainly can."

Pushing her backwards, Chieko was bewildered by their words. "_Nekozawa-san... A freak?_"

Turning her face to hide her emotions, the three laughed. "That won't work. You should just lock yourself up in that occult club, like that weird cousin of yours!"

That was the last straw.

"D — Don't say that," Chieko slipped. For a moment, the girls seemed off guard, but they quickly regained composure.

"Oh look who has a voice. Thought you only spoke creep," one seemingly remarked.

"You... you can say all you want about me.. but don't talk like that about Ume-chan!"

"He's better than a — all of you combined!"

The leader seemed to lose it at the sound of Chieko's voice, grabbing a part of her hair and making her coil back.

"That clown is a joke, just _like you, Kemonoko._" Raising her hand, Chieko was quick to shut her eyes.

**_x _****— ****_x _****— ****_x _****— ****_x_**

Opening them slowly, a twitchy arm floated above her, another holding it lightly.

"O — Ow! Let go of me!" Snatching her hand away, the three gasped at the revelation.

"Fujioka-san?"

Standing in front of her classmate, Haruhi sighed. "Really, I never knew that anyone could stoop this low," she (or to them, he) blatantly spat.

"But Haruhi-kun..." the harbinger tried to explain, but was shot down with a disappointed look.

"I got the book back," Haruhi said, giving it to one of the girls behind. "How did you know I was reading 'The Fault in Our Stars'?"

Ignoring any words to support her question, Haruhi placed hands on hips. "Next time you try to ruin someone elses day, you should probably do it _not _in front of a window. I really doubt you should come back to the Host Club ever again until you apologize."

Scanning their expressions, that probably wasn't anytime soon.

"And we don't talk to Chieko because we're some egotistic fools," Haruhi said calmly. "It's because we like her."

Chieko remained silent, rubbing her left arm. Wanting to say the last words, the leader bit back bitter insults.

"Y..You guys weren't all that anyways! If you want to hang out with this girl, then prepare to lose more than us!"

Stomping away, her lackeys followed, dispersing the tensioned air.

With a huge exhale, Haruhi bumped her shoulders with a cupped fist. "That was more drama than I'm used to."

"Now, why don't we head home, Hananoko-chan?"

It was first a sniff. Then another.

Chunky, appreciative tears fell from her glassed eyes.

"H-Hananoko-chan?" Haruhi exclaimed, bewildered.

"You're so kind, Fujioka-san!" Wiping the appreciative drops from her face, Chieko grabbed the smaller girls hands, blubbering.

Grinning sheepishly, Haruhi let out a laugh. "So you're the sensitive type, huh Hananoko-chan?"

Nodding without acknowledging what she said, Chieko rambled on. "I am indebted!"

Haruhi couldn't help but reply with a large chuckle. "You're so strange, Hananoko-chan!"

With a docile grin, Chieko released her hands and pressed two index fingers together. "I .. I get that a lot."

**_x _****— ****_x _****— ****_x _****— ****_x_**

"So then, then, I bought another huge cake!" Honey explained, walking along with the rest of the host club.

"I wonder where Haruhi is, Daddy is starting to miss her!" Tamaki preached, grabbing at his heart.

It wasn't soon before all boys saw a trio of quite angry females.

Fumed, the presence of the handsome group immediately made them turn pouty.

"Tama-kun!" one said dearly, the others trotting after her. Stopping in place, Tamaki happily stepped out, flipping his hair.

"My wonderful girls! What are you doing out so late after school? There is no session today, I am sorry to say!" he spun dramatically.

"We're not here for that. It's that girl, Kemonoko!"

Immediately, the others quirked their ears.

"What about Chi-chan?" Honey asked innocently.

Mean faced, the girl clicked her tongue distastefully. "Why do you even acknowledge her, she's so gross and creepy!"

No one liked where this was going.

"We saw her in the hallway, so we gave her a piece of our mind," one laughed, the others smiling. "She shouldn't even be in this school, even if she is rich."

"She's such a nuisance to you guys, she'll ruin your reputation. Maybe even curse you, right?" a lackey chimed.

"But then Haruhi-kun _defended _her! We weren't even going to hit her that hard, _promise!_"

Expecting some sort of mutual agreement, the three continued smiling and laughing at Chieko's prior misfortune.

So, they were completely taken aback when one was pushed to the ground.

"Ah, look what you made us do," the twins said, the girl still flabbergasted.

"W — What do you think you're doing?!" she said, backing up as her friends helped her up a few steps.

"More like what do you think you're doing! No one bullies Haru-chan _OR _Chi-chan!" Honey said, hugging his bunny.

"I am disappointed in you three. Ladies are supposed to act proper," Tamaki taught, shaking his head.

"This is going to account for a major loss in revenue. I apologize but we must drop immediate business transactions with you if you continue this behavior," Kyoya acclaimed.

"But.. but she's the loser here, not us!" the fallen exclaimed, tightening her fists. Searching for someone, anyone, that looked like he couldn't care, her eyes fell straight on the tallest. "Right.. Mori?"

The others walked away without a second glance, leaving the three by themselves.

"How interesting..." Kyoya remarked, with a small sigh.

"Better get started on the apology cards," the twins joked, hiding a deeper feeling of sympathy.

Meanwhile, Mori, along with Honey slightly ahead, hands in pockets, offered them a crestfallen stare.

He never understood the ways of womanly wrath.

* * *

done with chapter 3!  
i lied, it is still pretty dramatic.  
hope its transitioning fine so far~!  
luciten  
edit: im going to make more time between chapters, i uploaded these three  
because i had them practically rewritten! longer, better chapters up ahead :*


	4. The Friends That I Have

The ride back home was silent as usual, but Chieko couldn't help but overwhelm herself with overflowing thoughts and opinions. High school was a new frontier, and proved almost 100% that girls could be the bane of her existence... though it was supposedly boys who were to claim that title.

Brushing off the top of her head, Chieko was occupied with a flurry of thoughts from what had just happened. Even though it did end _somewhat _happily, she had an ever-tingling sensation that this was probably not the last of such events.

"Miss, are you alright?" her driver obliged to ask, glancing at his GPS. Chieko couldn't help but give a small inward smile, toying with her digits.

"I..It's alright," Chieko shrugged.

"Just.. little problems with class, is all."

**Chapter 4: The Friends That I Have**

"I could tell that yesterday she was slightly bothered by what had occurred last Friday... but it seems as though I miscalculated its extremity," Kyoya stated, arms crossed over his chest. "I have never met a student that would rile up girls like that before."

With a deep nod, Tamaki sighed dramatically. "Oh, poor, poor Hana-chan, the depression she must be feeling!"

It was early in the morning and the host club were currently carrying a quick meeting over yesterdays situations. Most were there because they were obliged to, and got over the morning crank quite readily.

Haruhi, though, felt inefficient.

"Why am I here?" she said, grumbling in protest. "It's so early..."

"If I'm up, then you're up!" Honey puffed, squeezing at his stuffed toy. "This is for Chi-chan's sake!"

"Especially if Mr. Low Blood Pressure is up, too. You care so much about Hana-chan, nehhh?" the twins chimed, hugging each other. Haruhi managed to roll her eyes.

"More like he cares about the secret she knows..."

Kyoya made no effort to rebuttal its truthfulness.

"That aside, we must approach this situation in the utmost manner! A lady must not be left to cry alone!" Tamaki said, hitting his head on the car's roof.

"Before you jump any bridges, what _are _we going to do, huh?" Haruhi asked, yawning nonchalantly.

"This meeting primarily serves for that purpose," Kyoya said. "I had asked recently if anyone had ideas..."

"But Kyoya didn't like any of them! What's so wrong with a cake wonderland?!" Honey whined, shaking his stuffed toy around.

"Or a makeover?" Tamaki and the twins erupted, grouped in a trio.

"Kendo arena," Mori said humbly. Kyoya shook his head.

"You see where I'm coming from?" he asked a deadpanned Haruhi, who nodded.

"But you know, I wouldn't know either. How about ask Nekozawa-san? They seem super close," the only female suggested. It took a few silent seconds to digest, but everyone came to a dumb conclusion: why didn't they think of that?

"You're so smart, my daughter!"

"Can we just go to school now..."

_**x **_— _**x **_— _**x **_— _**x**_

Nekozawa had woken up feeling _peculiar_. It was normal for him to feel slightly dark during the day, but not _strange_. Led downstairs and through a normal routine, he had no trouble stumbling throughout the dark house, his sister Kirimi nowhere to be seen.

He wondered about his lovely cousin Chieko. "_I hope she's doing well... No one has always favored us,_" he thought casually, exiting his house to enter his car. The way to the school was normal enough, and he felt unchanged as he arrived to school.

Until he was, yet again, stuffed into a light resistant body bag.

Quickly hurled out in the third music room, Nekozawa trembled at the glaring eyes.

"Ne-ko-za-wa-sannnnn!"

_**KEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!**_

_**x **_— _**x **_— _**x **_— _**x**_

She didn't feel like going to school, but her grade-a student personality made her feel guilty even thinking about missing it. Trudging into her first period, she took a tired seat arranging her glasses to face the front of the room.

"Good morning..." she saluted. Given the events, she wasn't particularly expecting a morning back.

Chin on hands, Honey brightly smiled. "Gooooooooood morninggggg, Chi-chan!"

"Good morning."

Chieko was caught off guard. They shouldn't be talking to her... their reputation might be ruined! Observing her slight jumpiness, Honey blinked and shifted his eyes.

Through an airy smile, Honey digresses his worries. "D..Do you think she's noticed, Takashi?!" he haphazardly asked.

Suspecting the same, Mori decided to tell him the truth. An abundance of flowers shrouded against the over-happy Honey, and Mori would be surprised if she _hadn't_ noticed something was up.

"N..No."

He just couldn't do it.

_**x **_— _**x **_— _**x **_— _**x**_

It was already the end of the day and she _still _couldn't find Nekozawa-san. "He was always hard to find.. but never this hard to find," Chieko said to herself, pouting. It would make her day if she was able to see her cousin at least once.

But that was alright, because she had another thing to enjoy today; tennis.

As the rank 13 international junior tennis player (sniff, sniff), she was obviously accepted without qualms to join Ouran's team. There had been a few delays here and there, but finally she would be able to meet her fellow teammates.

Invading her locker, she pulled out three identical rackets and her unflattering track suit. Old and worn out with maximum amounts of tennis fluff stuck between strings, she slung them behind her and grabbed at her larger duffel. This was probably one of the most exciting moments at Ouran to date.

Running towards the back courts, minus a few screams of bloody murder here and there, she made it in record time. Closing the gated door, she was absorbed in the sight before her.

100 mph, 113 mph serves whizzed past her. Clad in tennis outfits, both team counterparts stopped to look at the newcomer.

"Is.. Is that Hananoko-san?" one whispered, the others probably murmuring the same things. "She looks like.. that? Man, I thought she would be hotter..."

"So that's what coach meant by different."

"_Rough crowd..._" Chieko thought, looking at her feet.

"But boy, are you tall!"

Surprised at the shorter voice in front of her, a smiley player waved hello. "It's awesome to meet you, Hananoko-senpai! I heard you're _incredible _at tennis!"

With a wavering heart, the ghostly gal couldn't help but smile sheepishly at the compliment. What a kind, kind junior! "Thank you very much...!"

Chuckling at her behavior, the other swatted a hand. "No need! It'll be so cool working with you. My names Matsuhara Misaki, you could call me Misa, everyone does. I'm a sophomore just like you, rank third in tennis singles! You pushed me down, unfair," she kidded.

Unbeknownst of the tease, Chieko motioned in apology. "A —Ah, I'm sorry!"

"What are you doing to Kemonoko, you brat?!"

Approaching thunderously, a tall racket-wielding male pushed Misaki aside. "There's no time for pipsqueaks amongst stars!"

Grumbling distastefully, Misaki batted at the grandiose bigot. "Shut up, Kasuragi! Who do you think you are, anyways?!"

Egotistically, the boy snorted. Incredibly tall, possibly 6'2, with a tamed crewcut clad in white tennis gear, he held a pride that even scared Chieko.

"Kasuragi Ryuu, nice ta' meet you," he said. Taking her hand, he shook it firmly, spinning his racket repeatedly. "Captain of the Boys Varsity Tennis Team, rank 10 international junior player," he announced proudly.

Blowing a hit to his big head, Misaki clenched her used fist. "Number one jackass, too. And her names _Ha-na-no-ko_!" she finished, swiping her palms together.

"Tch," Ryuu teethed, clicking his tongue. "Anyways, mind the brat, always wants my attention. Coach ain't here today, he was feeling a bit under the weather. He wanted me and you to rally to teach these kiddies a lesson, Kemonoko," he said with a thumbs up.

Squeaking, Chieko reached for her better looking racket (still beat up) and pulled it out from behind. "O — Okay!"

At her eagerness, most of the team let out a few chuckles. Putting a hand on her head, Ryuu outwardly grinned. "That's the spirit!"

Truth be told, Chieko felt incredibly nervous. How long has it been since she's played. Two, three weeks? Setting herself up in the far right corner of the court, an audience of teammates spectated eagerly. "Don't kill her!" Ryuu's friends shouted, the girls whining in response.

"Kill him!" they cheered in brutality.

Pointing the racket towards her from across the regal arena, Ryuu triumphantly laughed. "I won't go easy on you! My serves are easily 130!" he bragged, ball resting in the middle of the open throat.

Nodding meekly, Chieko stood apart and readied for what was to come. Watching the ball attentively, her grip hardened. "I — I'm hitting the ball now!"

Whizzing past with ferocious tenacity, Ryuu could only blink as the ball was returned at hurling speed in point blank milliseconds. "Whoah," he breathed as he was forced down by the momentum, the shy girl dropping her racket in worry.

Like usual, Chieko was quick to apologize. "I — I'm sorry, Kasuragi-san!" Running to where he sat, she tripped over the net "gracefully", bending down to attend to him. "I didn't mean to hit it like that!"

Kasuragi shifted off the ground, Chieko flinching at his moves. "_Is he going to yell at me? Call me a freak?_" she worried.

The team, though, had an entirely different approach. First there was stifled chuckles, then it stormed into a group of newborn hyenas. "What happened, #10?!" one boy shouted for the rest, the others preoccupied with clutching at their kidneys.

Misaki ran towards the two, wiping away tears. "Hananoko-chan, that was awesome! You blew this bastard straight off his heels," she giggled with shifty eyes.

Ryuu couldn't help but smile himself. "Caught me off guard, Kemonoko. You pack quite the punch," he complimented, receiving an appreciative phantom-smile. Turning towards the laughing crew, he wagged his racket above his head.

"Stop laughing you mutts and get back to practice!"

Chieko, left with Misaki, let herself be content. She had a feeling that tennis practice wasn't going to be that bad.

"You know, a lot of us were really excited to hear that you were coming to Ouran," Misaki confessed, Chieko listening with perked ears.

"Even though they said they were bummed, and for a stupid, stupid reason," she said, shaking her head in disappointment. "We all really want to play with you."

Cue the waterworks.

"H-Hananoko-chan?" Misaki alertly questioned, as fat drops fell from her glasses.

"No, it's nothing! B — But thank you! You're so kind, Misa-san," Chieko said, wiping at her tears with the sleeve of her track sweater.

"Misaki! I don't see you working!" Ryuu warned, as he sat on a high chair observing his underlings doing penalty push-ups.

"Yikes... Gotta go before he hits me with his special," Misaki said, pulling a grotesque face. "That man is a dictator..."

Running over to the group, Chieko rested her racket against the net, but Ryuu stopped her midway. "You can just observe the lackeys, no need for your contributions~!" Ryuu said with a corrupt smile.

"Unfair!" the rest shouted, working their way to 150 push ups.

"BE QUIET!"

_**x **_— _**x **_— _**x **_— _**x**_

From behind a row of trees, the infamous host club watched in their natural habitat.

"She's AWESOME!" Honey shouted, mouth quickly covered by Mori.

Shushing him, Haruhi shook her head. "Honey-senpai, please be quiet!"

"Can't deny, that was a very impressive shot!" Tamaki commented, turning towards Kyoya who merely nodded, busy making unknown calculations.

"So what Nekozawa said was right," Haruhi said, arms crossed.

"I guess we're getting her that then. It would only seem fitting... but my, will this burn quite a hole..." Kyoya said, mentally drained by his summations.

"But seriously, did you see that? She made Ryuu-chan _fall_!" Honey said, flicking his hand back in forth to copy her motion. "Ne, Takashi?"

"It was something," he said normally, but indeed even he was quite shocked from the tiny display. Even though it was shorter than any rally he's ever seen, it was obvious that both were evenly matched and the element of surprise stopped any further hits. But he never thought that someone as frail as Chieko would have done that to a person like Ryuu, bursting at the seams with pride, pride, pride.

"But anyways," Kyoya commenced, closing his binder. "It seems as though we have finally met at a conclusion..."

Nodding, the rest of the hosts chirped in agreement.

"I hope she likes it!" Honey sung, with a full grin.

Turning back to the tennis, the host club was on edge to notice how most of the members were already leaving, Chieko close behind.

"Escape!" the twins exclaimed, dragging Haruhi with them, which led Tamaki to tumble fast. Kyoya, sighing again at their antics, pushed the bridge of his glasses.

"We'll see you two tomorrow," he politely abided, dissolving into the trees.

"It's going to be so exciting tomorrow! I hope she likes it, Takashi, I really do!"

On her way home, Chieko felt the need to sneeze repeatedly. Rubbing underneath her nostrils, she wondered aloud.

"Is... someone talking about me?"

* * *

chapter 4 DONE!  
wheeeeeeee.


	5. The Small Progress

She had exited school feeling rejuvenated, so she wasn't as annoyed by her siblings when she arrived home.

"Welcome back, Chieko-sama. How was your Tuesday?" Honda asked, sweeping away a large pile of cookie crumbs. The twins bombarded her with sticky fingers, jogging on up from their large sweet buffet.

"Kemo-nee!" they exclaimed, hugging at her legs. Honda took away her school belongings and stowed them to another butler.

"It was really, really good today!" Chieko eagerly said, fist pumped up at chest-level. "I.. I met my tennis team and then there was this girl Misa-chan," she sniffed, remembering the kind girl. "And the boys captain, Kasuragi-san..."

Honda gave a motherly laugh. "That's _really good_ to hear, too, Chieko-sama. Why all dreary at the boys captain?" she observed, dumping her dustbin.

"W.. Well, I made him fall from hitting his serve too hard. I didn't mean to!" she crestfallenly input, sitting down with face in hands. "He must dislike me now..."

Swatting away, Honda shook her head. "Nonsense. No one can dislike you just because you whooped them in a sport," she said uncharacteristically with a haggard and hearty chuckle.

"Oh god, she's turning," Kenji icked, Jiri clinging to him.

"I mean, what's a man if he can't return a shot like yours?!" the maid erupted, slamming down her broom. "Back in 83', why I NEVER..."

Chieko took the moment to slink out the kitchen and high tail upstairs, successfully dodging another tennis backlash. She loved Honda for the life of her... but not her alternate tennis-ego. One could only take that much.

Closing the door behind her, she melted into her bed, diving straight into her pjs; a plain sweater and basketball shorts. Appreciative of the warmth in the room, she glanced over at her calendar.

It was getting pretty chilly... but then again, it was mid-November. It was tolerable, maybe about 52 degrees today, but Chieko felt that it was only going to get colder. "_I guess I should ask Honda to get my winter wardrobe... And I need to get a new jacket, too..._"

Rolling over on her back, she clutched at a stray tennis racket, and hugged it to her chest.

She hoped that Wednesday would be half as good as today.

**Chapter 5: The Small Progress**

"A cafe, a cafe!" Honey jumped, Mori to his left.

Sighing inaudibly, Mori adjusted his bag slung over his shoulder and continued to listen to his smaller cousin as they walked to first period.

Heading inside, they took their seats next to Chieko, saying good morning nonchalantly. Tight-lipped she vowed not to reply to save their social status, but it seemed as though they were too absorbed in their conversation otherwise.

Mr. Sanin walked in calmly and turned to the board, officially starting the lesson. Chieko tried to pay attention, as usual, but Mori and Honey continued on having a very interesting side-chat.

"Ryuu-chan said today, so today it shall be!" Honey pipped, a happy smile dancing on his face.

"But doesn't he have practice...?" Mori said, pushing his pens aside. Honey shook his head.

"No! He said that he would meet with the others at the second gym, but never practiceeeeee~" Honey bargained, winking boyishly. "So now we can go with him to the cafe I wanted to take him to!"

"I don't think he would want to go," Mori shortly suggested. Honey heard none of it, and began to list a large amount of cake that he would be buying.

On the other hand, even though eavesdropping was incredibly nosy of her, Chieko sighed at the revelation. And she was so looking forward to rallying with others today...

**x — x — x — x**

Chieko suspected the girls finally got to the hosts, and their truths finally made them realize.

Talking to her would only cause bad reputation.

They didn't say anything to her. But oddly enough, it wasn't exactly like Monday... maybe more on the secretive side. About what though?

Tense for most of the day, Chieko was pleasantly off-guard when Haruhi greeted her good afternoon. Finally a person that didn't care about what she could to to utterly destroy her popularity.

"Hello, Hananoko-chan!"

Confused by her more-than reserved expression, Haruhi tilted her head. "Is something wrong? Did those girls get to you again?!" she asked exasperatedly. "I swear if they did..."

Shaking her head, Chieko put up her hands. "N - No! It's just that... are you sure you're okay with talking to me?"

Teasingly, Haruhi pointed a finger. "What? You don't like me, Hananoko-chan?"

"No! Not at all!" she protested, quickly covering her mouth as an amber blush blazed on her cheeks. "I like you very much, but you... you don't have to talk to me, it's totally understandable if you don't, anyways.."

Haruhi tried not to burst out laughing, shoulders quivering.

Unable to process this, Chieko stuttered. "It — It's_ true_!"

"Geez Chieko, you're incredibly innocent."

Head titled, Chieko remained silent. Was that a bad thing or a good thing? "I.. I'm sorry?" she concluded, seeming more like a question than anything else. Haruhi laughed again.

"There's nothing to be sorry about, Hananoko-chan. You should know by now that I don't care about my reputation, because you're my friend and what's so bad about talking to your friends, huh?"

Chieko blushed at the thought. Haruhi? Her friend?! The word couldn't escape her lips, but Chieko was indeed overwhelmed with gratuity.

"Really? You don't mind?" Chieko thought out with a pleased albeit haunting smirk.

Hand over hers, Haruhi shook her head truthfully. "Not at all."

On the edge of blubbering, Haruhi quickly clasped over Chieko's mouth.

"A...And I know you're happy and all, but as my friend, could you not cry we might get in trouble," Haruhi breathed, glancing over her shoulder as the teacher wielded a deadly textbook.

Eye-smiling gratefully, Chieko nodded. "Okay!"

**x — x — x — x**

Saying goodbyes, Chieko literally bloomed as she walked towards the second gym.

"Fujioka-san... My friend..."

Stuck in her own little world, she flew down a flight of stairs and started jogging rapidly. She might be the last one there; two minutes late!

In her flurry, turning a shallow right, she bumped straight into a hard figure that somewhat grunted at the impact.

Flying backwards, landing on her heels, she blinked and bowed without another thought.

"I'm sorry!"

After a few seconds of silence, she dared peered up and was confused at the sight of such a lone ranger.

"Ah, Kemonoko!"

Placing a hand on top of her head, Kasuragi brazenly smiled. "Nice to see you here, champ! Almost tossed me again, ya' know?"

Misaki popped up from behind the taller male and grinned brightly. "Hey Hananoko-chan! Done with class?"

Chieko, though, was apparently confused. "Kasuragi-san? Misa..ki-san? What are you guys doing here? I..Is the meeting over already? Did I miss it?!" she jumped to, clutching at her chest. She knew she was going to be a little late... but for crying out loud this late?

Blinking, Kasuragi scratched the back of his head. "Meeting? Hey, Misaki, did we have a meeting today?"

Delivering a hefty blow to the bottom of his chin, Misaki heard none of his foolish behavior. "I'm not the captain here, you idiot. But no, we don't have a meeting today, Ryuu here just called off activities because he wants to go to a crepe place he heard about," she sighed, fanning herself.

Kasuragi excitedly held up a colorful pamphlet. "For good reason! Look at number 9, nutella addict! Delicious, right?" he squealed with a thumbs up, pointing at the image.

Nodding, Chieko let herself sheepishly smile at the two, hopefully covering her mouth with her cheeks pink. "Yeah.. But I never knew you two were dating..!" she pipped. "That's really sweet!"

A squinty Kasuragi and an unreadable Misaki just stared back at her intensely.

"W — Wha? Did.. I get that wrong?! Only couples would eat crepes together, right?" Chieko stammered, flailing around.

Kasuragi let out a preserved guffaw. "Me?! And this MIDGET?!"

Instead of looking flustered, Misaki just slouched over and released a wheeze. "We're childhood friends. No one would want this freak anyways, it's all tennis, tennis, tennis. You know Houjou Kiseki liked him, and he was too busy playing with his damn tennis balls night and day..."

"The model?!"

"Oh _yeah_, the model."

"Besides, she isn't my type. All prim and proper, pick up a racket for once princess," Kasuragi scoffed, fist under chin in a striking pose. "I prefer girls like you, Kemonoko! All athletic, creepy and grudge-like, super _hot_-," ear pulled, Misaki dragged the crepe loving culprit to plunge down numerous flights of stairs.

Cringing at the thunks and thumps, Chieko watched as Misaki tapped her neck in release. "I should probably take him to the crepe shop now seems like he's had enough hunger deprivation for the day. Where you heading to, Hananoko-chan?"

Stepping down, Chieko shrugged. "I.. I thought there was a meeting today, so I didn't really plan on doing anything in particular."

"So, going home then, huh?" Misaki suggested, jumping at the final landing before the first floor.

"Probably," stomach grumbling, Chieko shyly looked at her shoes. "I might grab something before... though..."

Laughing, the two rejoined a battered Kasuragi near the school entrance. Even though he had just been thrown down four flights of stairs, Ryuu beamed with happiness. "See you tomorrow then, Kemonoko! C'mon Misaki, crepe time!"

Waving goodbye, she watched the two disappear into a fancy car and drive off from campus. Back to the problem of her grumbling stomach, she clutched at her abdomen. "Maybe I can ask Chef to make oriental tonight, or order out and bring it home while I finish my homework... I need to ask about history tutoring, too..."

Watching the girl leave, the host club felt defeated.

"Stupid Ryuu-chan!" Honey flailed, wiggling his bunny around. "It was so perfect, too!"

Kyoya shrugged. "Can't prevent everything now, Honey-senpai. There is always another way to our plan."

"Should have sent out Mori. Girls totally afraid of him, he would have terrified her into the second gym," the twins teased, Mori shell-shocked into reaction.

"Hey, stop bullying Mori-senpai," Haruhi said. "He can't help scaring someone as innocent as Hananoko-chan."

Unable to even whisper a syllable, croaking, Mori clocked out. "Funny though, as to your silent behavior seems to be a major benefactor to shy customers," Kyoya dwindled. "Viable information."

"Do not worry, comrades! Just before she had left, I managed to do the inevitable!" Tamaki showed off, prancing.

"But now you must adhere to your king to make amends with such a lady! And quickly!"

**x — x — x — x**

"Thank you for your patronage!"

Whistling low and ghoulishly, Chieko walked out with a plastic bag filled with commoner food, a guilty pleasure of her homework and study nights. Stuffing her wallet back into her bag, she bopped back as a stray note fell out.

Picking it up after placing her bag down, she folded it open carefully. Would it explode paint out on retrieval? One may never know.

Scanning its contents, she read.

_Dear Chi-chan,_

_Belzeneff here. My mother is throwing a party to congratulate your transfer to Ouran tonight at 9. Before that, I hope that you can meet me at the pastry shop on Chambers around 7, so we can talk about the occult club and your possible joining._

_See you,_

_Belzeneff._

"Eeh?!" she squeaked in a disgruntled manner. How sudden! It was only four, why didn't he tell her sooner?!

"_It's nice and all.. but what will I wear?_" she worried over, wringing her hands. Better yet, what would she bring as a gift? She hadn't gone shopping in at least three months so the only things that were in her closet were moldy formal wear and bad decisions.

Peering into her plastic bag, she juggled the quality of its contents. For Ume-chan's mother, she had some old, albeit expensive, 2012 mint blue Prada bag she could give... but for Ume-chan himself?

Inwardly smiling, she closed it. "Good thing I bought Baby Star..." she snickered, shaking her shoulders as onlookers screamed away.

"It's his favorite... and Meiji..."

Walking off towards her house, a chill ran up her spine.

"... B — Better get home quickly..."

* * *

chapter 5, chapter 5~ /in the tone of blues skidoo  
well done with this  
chapter 6 in the making!


	6. The Way They Apologize

Falling face-first onto her bed, Chieko grumbled in indecisiveness, back home. She had already picked out an outfit for the night, but being herself she thought of the worst things possible with such attire.

Fumbling amongst her sheets and pillows, she didn't notice Honda waltz in, picking up clothes scattered around the room.

"What's the matter, Chieko-sama? Can't pick out an outfit?"

Head in pillow, she took a moment to peer at her wall clock. Already 5.

"I.. picked out something, but do you think it's okay for tonight?"

Turning to the choice, Honda mulled it over: a long-sleeve chiffon blouse, skinny jeans, a navy trench coat and plain-jane Chanel flats. "I think it's fine," she quipped hesitantly.

"But sometimes, I wish you would dress up a little more... promiscuously, you know?"

Ablaze, Chieko remained speechless as she watched the maid continue cleaning up. "Always wearing sport bras and granny panties. You know sport bras practically pull _you_ down two cup sizes to an _A_? And your legs are like your mothers, too, and you don't even wear shorts in the summertime..."

"H — Honda!"

A large pile of underwear chucked at her face, Chieko burrowed beneath it. "D — Don't say things like that!"

Puckering her lips, Honda looked off to the side. "I'm telling the 100% truth. Get dressed now, so I can do your dinky hair," she teased, searching for combs and styling spray. "You sure you don't at least want lip-gloss?" she sung, shaking a slim tube of sparkly makeup.

"No!" Chieko protested weakly, pulling on her clothes.

Forcing the girl to sit in front of her vanity, Honda sighed. "What would your mother think, hmm?" she lousily berated, brushing Chieko's raven hair.

Puffing her cheeks, Chieko crossed her arms. "She doesn't mind. O — Only you do!"

"Yeah, yeah. Up or down?"

"Up... like usual, please~."

Raking through, Chieko could see Hondas disapproval in the mirror. "Up, all the time, huh? You are so selfish sometimes. You know how hard it is sometimes to pull up your thick, overgrown hair? You even give away your Prada, not spending your parents money..."

"_Isn't that the opposite..._" Chieko thought.

"And hiding your good looks!"

"I like my hair up, though," Chieko shyly said, avoiding the second assumption.

Finishing the final touches, Honda managed to slip in a pair of diamond rhinestone bobby pins at Chieko's left temple much to her chagrin. "It's cute and it will keep hair out of your face!"

Half a mind to rip it out, Chieko let Honda have her way. "But you know Chieko, you should really try to be... cuter. There's a lot of handsome men at Ouran, right? You could hook one looking like.."

Snatching her glasses off, Chieko let out a banshee wail. "Honda, give it back!"

Turning her towards the mirror, Chieko shrieked at her reflection. Tantalizing steel-purple eyes stared back with thick eyelashes. One might say she looked... _decently attractive_ (hack wheeze cough choke). "You look so good without your placebo glasses, why do you even wear them anyways?"

Grabbing them back, Chieko all but shoved them onto her face. "I'll kill people without these!"

Dismissing her with a hand wave, Honda trotted after her down to the first floor. "There are cute guys in Ouran though, right?"

Frozen in her place, Chieko gripped at her present-bag. "No! Not at all!"

"Liar," Honda spat, following her as she neared the doorway. "There are and you know it. People are rich because they're either, a, pretty, and or, b, economically successful. How about... Kasuragi-san? He seems quite _rowdy_," the middle-aged woman purred.

Red cheeked, Chieko shook her head furiously. "H — He's my captain!"

"How about that burdening host club?"

Silence.

"They must be mighty handsome!"

Steam erupted from her ears. Were they handsome? Haruhi was a girl... she was cute, but Chieko couldn't at all call her handsome. Honey-senpai was more... _childish, _maybe even cuter than Haruhi.

Tamaki was... well he was Tamaki and Chieko didn't quite like his overdramatics, but he was a nice, surprisingly acceptive person.

The twins were little devils so she could have never looked at them in any kind of way other than dangerous.

So that left Kyoya and Mori.

Kyoya, as much as she would like to deny it, looked as decent as the rest of them. As much as he teased and stabbed, he _was _nice at points, and was very knowledgeable in business. +1 brownie point.

Mori.

He was scary. Scarier than Kyoya since he said nothing, apparently felt nothing and did nothing. Haninozuka's prime sidekick, all he did to her was give her blank stares, void of opinion or bias. But then again, he still was a boy. Taller than all of the other hosts, she never remembered him to be mean, just bystander-ish.

When did she become so... inclined on putting him down under all the others? He wasn't hurting her or anything.

"I'm.. I'm leaving!" Chieko screeched. "_Not like my thoughts would matter anyways.. I... have no right to say if they're handsome..._"

Slamming the door behind her, Honda stopped it with her heel. "THEY'RE GORGEOUS AND YOU KNOW IT!"

* * *

**Chapter 6: The Way They Apologize**

"_Geez, Honda, why would you even... g..gah!" _Hitting her head, Chieko melted into a pile of goop once she had managed to clamber inside her Maybach.

She watched the rolling suburb unfold beyond her window, fixing her fly-aways. "_I hope that Ume-chan still likes Baby Star..._" she hummed to herself, peering inside the bag brimmed with convenience snacks and Prada.

For some reason, just in the car, a large amount of exhaustion waved down on her. She had never realized the impact of the last three days until now, where she was practically alone in the backseat.

Her surroundings turned into blurry premonitions as she felt overwhelmed with emotional fatigue. Maybe a little shut-eye would calm her down...

"Psst, Hananoko-sama!"

Startled by the disturbance, Chieko blinked twice, noticing that she was face to face with her driver.

"A..Ah! Sorry, Hiyo! I... I dozed off," she apologized, scratching her cheek. The young chauffeur chuckled and unlocked the car doors.

"We're here," he started, but then cleared his throat. "But before you leave, are you sure that nothing _bothersome _is going on?"

Chieko didn't feel like lying to Hiyo, but at the same time she didn't want to tell him the full truth.

"It's those club boys Honda's been yapping about, ain't it?"

Sputtering nonsense, Chieko pushed her bag aside. "She.. She said what?!"

Laughing knowledgeabl-y, Hiyo turned back to his position at the wheel. "Ah, so that's it hmm. Honda never seems to keep secrets, you should know that by now."

"Don't let boys bother you. By the things Honda tells me, they seem nice enough. Rich and conceited, but _nice enough_."

Chieko frowned. "Easy for you to say, Hiyo."

With a smug stare, Hiyo whipped back. "Uh huh. Did they ever call you ugly or stupid? Did they push you down stairs? Bully you?"

Silent at the lecture, Hiyo smiled triumphantly. "No, they didn't did they? Now go get on to your precious Ume-chan he'll be sure to cheer you up."

Formally booted out of the car, Chieko boldly stuck out her tongue as Hiyo skidded away. "Call me when you're partied out!"

Tired from listening to her rambunctious driver, she turned and walked the few steps towards the window of the bakery, peering in to check if Ume-chan was inside.

All of her drained energy flurried back at the sight of her cloaked relative. He turned, face veiled, and bowed Belzeneff in return. Excited already, Chieko took no time to burst through the door after fleeing from the window display.

"Ume-chan!" she sung, running over. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she offered a fluttery grin.

"It's so nice... to.. see.. you.. U — Ume-chan?" With each syllable she paled and slowly oh slowly...

What had she done?!

* * *

Backing away mechanically, she pointed at the Ume-chan in front of her.

"Hooo!" she ghostily screeched, zillions pieces of popping confetti dispersing above. Falling back on the floor, she whipped around. Only now had she realized the rest of the pastry shop was empty.

"Ahh, well look at what the cat dragged in, hmmm? Chi-chan, what a pleasure it is to see you this evening!" Tamaki said, fingertips on forehead.

Chieko paled, ignoring the flamboyant blonde. She.. she had just hugged...

"Good evening, Hananoko-chan!"

Haruhi Fujioka.

"Fujioka-san!" Chieo sputtered, animating. "I'm sorry for hugging you! I... I thought you were... Your body will never be clean! I'm sorry if evil spirits follow you!" she blubbered, blushing.

Haruhi shook her head to deny her apologies. "It's okay Hananoko-chan. I wouldn't let any of these guys play Nekozawa anyways, and I doubt a hug would curse me. They don't know the meaning of roleplay," Haruhi sighed, pulling down her hood.

"Quite the contrary. We just made Haruhi wear the suit for entertainment," Kyoya said, tone unreadable. "Good evening."

Dwindling back to formalities, Chieko bowed in return. "Ah, yes, good evenin-"

Wait a minute.

"Uhmmm... Why _were _you dressed up as Ume-chan?"

Tamaki spun into the scene. "We must explain!" prancing, he whisked Haruhi from her seat. "But after I applaud you of such excellent acting, of course only possible through my skilled genetics as your father..."

Quizzically, Chieko looked up from her position on the floor as a hand appeared to her left. Morinozuka-san?

He.. he was helping her up?

"C'mon Chi-chan!" Chieko didn't even notice a tiny Honey perched up on his shoulders. Those two were really inseparable.

"He won't bite! We have cake to eat!"

"Oh.. Thank you."

On her way up, she mistangled her feet and was _this _close to falling onto him.

Mori, to save the day, put a hand on her shoulder, to catch his apparent over-pull, and instead thanked was welcomed with a loud whine.

Shrieking at the touch, Chieko instinctually drew away, only after realizing her rude behavior. "Ah! Sorry, Morinozuka-san, and you tried to help me up too..."

She inhaled her second shriek once Mori's face had slightly fallen. It wasn't angry or indifferent this time, more saddened. Punching her face emotionally, she digressed. "_Great, now he hates me!_"

"Chi-chan, don't be afraid of Takashi! Look, look," Honey tried, tugging at his cheeks to make him smile.

"See?"

The picture before her was a funny sight. A smaller blonde boy perched on the shoulders of a mysterious black-haired Japanese man with seemingly no trace of humor, pulling at his cheeks. Mori didn't seem to try to shy away, but he was obviously irked by the face stretching tension.

Pouting at the portrayal, Chieko scratched the back of her head. "S..Sorry, Morinozuka-san, I'm just not used to people helping me..."

"Next time if you ever fall, I'll be sure to help you... N — Not that I want you to fall, of course..! But thank you for your kind action."

Surprisingly, Mori managed to smile back. Though it was small and almost unnoticeable, he smiled. "No problem," he said curtly, turning to the others.

Now, what did they have for her, anyways?

* * *

At the center of the pastry shop, a flurry of waitresses placed down cakes and desserts of all sorts.

"C — Cake... cake everywhere," Chieko noticed, following the cheesecakes being placed down.

"Awesome, right? Kyoya finally listened to me after we captured Neko-chan!" Honey chirped, gobbling down a few slices.

"Given that your favorite shop is this bakery, and they serve cakes as well as macarons, I was somewhat forced into it," Kyoya said, sighing. "Alls fair though, I've managed to scurry a few discounts, sparsely of course," he continued. Though his tone was somewhat normal, Chieko could sense the dispersed negative nature of such words. She did not want to know what _he _did in his free time.

Though everything was considerably fine and dandy, Chieko was still stuck with an everlasting question: What in whatevers name was going on?!

"I appreciate all the sweets... b — but please, what is going on?" she asked shyly, looking around searching for soul-settled answers.

"You're creepy _and_ slow, aren't you? Neeh?" the twins chimed, hand on her head.

"It's so cute how you're all dressed up too. You should do that more often!" Hikaru said, laughing away as he poked at her expensive hair pins.

"Please... just answer me, even just a little bit," she pleaded with quietly, grabbing at air above.

"Allow me!" Tamaki jumped to, foot on seat.

"I... should probably do it, Tamaki-senpai," Haruhi pushed, as her senior retreated into a molding corner.

"Simply put, it's an apology party, if that could be called so," Haruhi concluded, chewing on strawberries. "They somehow found out what happened Monday. So we planned on throwing it at the second gym, but that didn't work so Tamaki slipped a pretend note before you left school and now we're here." Her explanation gained a round of applause.

"And what a conundrum it probably was! Oh, poor, poor, Chi-chan _thrashed _into the depths of an unknown jungle that is called women and jealousy!" Others nodded, but for the most part Chieko was still, and seemed to forever be, confused.

"_Before that_," Haruhi continued, "We talked to Nekozawa,"

"More like captured the guy, ne, Takashi?" "Ah."

"And he told us a lot about the things you like."

"So we threw you a par-tyyyy!" Honey erupted, flinging confetti. "With cake, and macarons, and presents, and cheesecake..!"

"Macarons... c — cheesecake?" Chieko gulped, darting her eyes to scout out.

"Yeah! Of all kinds! Here! I bet you'll like these!"

Placing a plate of green tea macarons and mango cheesecake in front of her, her mouth watered. How did he know these were her favorites?!

"Like the rich people they are, they thought that by giving you dessert and presents it would make everything better," Haruhi seemingly accused, finishing her piece quickly.

"O..Oh?" Chieko said. Really, even though she was a bit fuzzy on the situation, Chieko did think what they were doing was kind. A party, though somewhat obligatory, for her? Never in a million years would she say she had a party thrown for her, other than birthdays.

"We do it in good will," Kyoya said. "In no way would we gain from spending money on something so personal." Was that another way to say 'I'm genuinely trying to apologize,'?

"Eat them, eat them!" Honey cheered, pointing at the cake and macarons with his fork. "You'll like it alot! And if you don't I could eat it for you!"

Chieko gulped. "B — But it's so pretty... I don't think I should..."

"C'mon, this is all for you, Hananoko-chan. Don't be shy," Haruhi said, with an inviting smile. Grinning meagerly back, Chieko dared to scoop up a piece of cheesecake and mango, shaking it up to her mouth. All observed her reaction.

Taking the final chews before swallowing, her cheeks tinted the frailest pink. "Wow," she breathed, looking up. "This is really, really good!"

The others either smiled or laughed. "You really like mangoes, don't you Chi-chan?" Honey questioned, finishing his fifth plate of pastry. In return, the girl sheepishly rubbed the back of her head and gave a haunting grin.

"Yeah.. they're my favorite fruit~"

* * *

The rest of the party was what it was supposed to be filled with; eating, soliciting, and all out basking in an even atmosphere. Chieko didn't say much, but boy did she enjoy observing the host club and their antics.

Everything pretty much took a turn for the worst when Tamaki got up from his seat and banged on his glass. "Now, now I think we've all had enough cake and treats for the day," he announced, ignoring the rants coming from Honey's general direction. "There are much more important matters to attend to."

Chieko tilted her head. Would she finally be able to understand the true meaning of this apology party?

"Time for your present!" The twins eclectically decided to harbor a dual set of drums to roll for this forsaken moment, which caught Chieko completely off guard.

"E..Eh?! Wh — What's happening, everythings dark, ah limelights!"

Incredulously, everyone else seemed somewhat _used _to this extremity and casually watched as their leader flamboyantly pranced around with contained excitement.

"Chi-chan, have you ever watched the wonderful American tale, _The Godfather_?"

Chieko stayed silent, not knowing what was to come. Better stay quiet than comply to Tamaki Suoh.

"Well then, I'm going to make you an offer _you _can't refuse!"

"More like forced to accept!" a twin said, laughter in return.

"What is it that most girls yearn for in Ouran? What is it that most girls love?" Tamaki started, spinning on one foot. "Why the obvious answer is us, the host club, of course!"

"I... I don't know where this is goi-" Chieko tried to say, but was hand-clamped by Haruhi. "He won't stop at this point, just listen and ignore after," Haruhi said in a hushed tone, Chieko compliant.

"Marginally, Tamaki is correct. As the number one grossing club, our audience ranges from all four-year students of different economic backgrounds," Kyoya pinpointed, writing unknown notes. "Surprisingly, they prove memorabilia brings in quite the income."

"He only gets this talkative about business, I swear," Haruhi said dully. Chieko held in a laugh at the remark, but then continued to pay attention to Tamaki; who couldn't at this point.

"I hope you like our gift!" Honey wished, holding on to Mori's left arm. "'Cause I really do!"

"Anyways," the blonde king rambled. "We, the host club, happily invite you to be the first official female member!"

Chieko swore she heard a gong as her mind became an absolute blank. Grey in utter shock, Honey couldn't help but poke the teen. "Chi-chan?"

"You've already become so involved in our activities, and you seem quite warm to my darling daughter! Of course, we're not asking you to entertain male guests or even female guests, no, I am sorry but sadly you aren't as glamorous as I to claim such a title!"

Stabbed, Chieko croaked a response. "But.. what if I-"

"As a member, you have full access to our hosts, have say in our activities, and can gain dire relationships in this tiny world!"

"_B — Basically, they want me to get some kind of... membership?_" Chieko tried to glue together in her brain, Haruhi patting her on the back.

"Somehow, they think that by catering you boy-service it'll make you happy and willing to keep my secret," Haruhi explained, spanning her hands from across the table. "I thought it was stupid at first, but after a while, why not? We both need a little bit of reality in our lives, right, Hananoko-chan?"

Boy, wasn't that true.

Chieko felt double-sided. Joining another club would be good for colleges, and frankly she didn't completely _loathe _the idea. Sure, she was afraid of the girls that would bother her-

"And for the girls, do not worry about them. I have my ways," Kyoya read telepathically. Ok, number priority: do not ever ever _ever _angry Kyoya Ootori. A gleam of 100 soldiers could practically be seen in the midsts of his shimmering frames.

Yet, would she be okay with them? More likely, would they be okay.. with _her?_ The girl who kills with a single glance, that brings and wrecks spiritual havoc with every footstep she take?

"But what if I can't meet your expectations?"

* * *

The shop became hauntingly quiet. "Our... expectations?"

Realization dawned upon the club at the same time, minus the seemingly ahead Kyoya of course. Chieko Hananoko was..

Truly innocent.

"I'm good at tennis, but that's mostly it. Are.. Are you sure you want someone like me in your club?"

This wasn't coming out of some sort of fake bashfulness. This was coming from a girl considered an outcast who sounded like she really would be saddened if somehow she messed up in their club. It was _that _serious.

"Oh, Chi-chan, how cute you are behind that creepy fourth-wall you put up!" Tamaki said, hugging her neck. Breaking the tension, Haruhi couldn't help but pull out her pity smile.

"Hananoko-chan, don't think like that. We all like you here, right?" she asked around.

"Yeah!" Honey enthusiastically motivated, shaking Takashi to say something.

"Sure, whatever. You're still dusty though, jeez!" the twins said simultaneously, patting her head to rid of the tiny particles.

"I would like to say so," Kyoya said plainly.

Chieko peered peripherally doe-eyed at the hosts. Did they really like her? Though they were just "verbal obligations" as the great Kyoya had once said, they wrapped around her macabre heart in many ways than one.

Looking at the only person who didn't respond, she met eyes, well, glass, with the silent type. He was nestled between her and Honey on the right side of the table and hadn't touched pretty much anything except for one single green-tea macaron.

"Yeah," he replied singularly. Full acceptance?!

"So as you seemingly have no rejection of my generous offer, let me introduce you to the host club!"

"Tamaki-senpai, don't you start you're going to scar her-" The twins jumped to action dragging Haruhi away to a corner with a chair and rope in their possession.

"As a member, you also have direct contact and choice to all of our hosts! But what kind, more what _types _are they, hmm?"

Grabbing Chieko from her seat, he twirled her in front of the table to view the others, Haruhi the only one seated in the middle of their tiny grouping.

"The little devil type?" The twins couldn't help but somewhat pose quite close together in to show their status. Chieko gulped. Nope definitely not.

"The loli-shota type?" Honey grinned cutely in response. If Chieko didn't know any better, she would've guess he was in middle school.

"The natural type?" Haruhi, of course. Poor girl, restrained to a chair due to her possible heroic actions. She was certain to be Chieko's safety, the go-to host.

Chieko continued to be held by the blonde, and had no energy to retaliate.

"Or how about the cool type?"

She pondered on the title. Kyoya, the cool type? Well.. nothing else fit him.. maybe the business mogul type? No.. no that wasn't very attractive...

"The wild type?"

W _— _Wild type?! More like the silent and scary type... "_Oh god I'm doing it again..._" Chieko shunned herself. Never judge a book by its cover Chieko, something she should be very used to. Even if the cover is albeit a little scary, emotionless and void.

"Or maybe even me... the princely type?"

Using his fingers to level her head up, he dared close to her lips. "One can't deny the sparks that fly between man and woman..."

Shrieking loudly, she pushed him away and fell back into her seat. The club, minus the other girl, surrounded her slowly.

"N...-"

"NOOOOOOOOOO!"

* * *

"_Maybe... maybe they're a little bit handsome."_

* * *

super long chapter, but its finally finished.  
yayyyyyyy for 3.8k word count.  
chiekos pic reference up on my profile  
look if you like, i think its pretty close to what i want  
her to look like; just without glasses.

**THANKS ALL FOR THE REVIEWS!  
**sorry i can't reply on them or anything,  
busy with sat prep and stuff! love you all though! 3


End file.
